RESOLUTION 372 on ENERGY AND SECURITY

presented by the Science and Technology Committee and adopted by the Plenary Assembly on Tuesday 18 November 2008, Valencia, Spain.

The Assembly,

1. Acknowledging that energy security has become a major challenge to the national security interests of NATO countries;

2. Noting that energy security is best achieved by balancing the interests of energy suppliers, consumers and transit countries and by allowing market forces to govern global and regional energy markets in a transparent and non-discriminatory fashion;

3. Concerned that energy resources are subject to extensive state control and are increasingly used as a foreign policy instrument;

4. Noting that some NATO member countries have a high degree of dependence on one source of energy and on one supplier;

5. Concerned about the possible creation of an international cartel for natural gas similar to that of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which would pose a significant threat to the price and the supply of energy as well as to the economy and the security of the world;

7. Recognising that NATO was founded to address “hard security” threats and that other organisations, such as the European Union and the International Energy Agency, have historically led efforts to address energy-related challenges;

8. Convinced, nevertheless, that NATO can add value to multinational efforts aimed at enhancing energy security in the Euro-Atlantic region;

9. Welcoming progress made in this regard at the NATO Summits in Riga and Bucharest;

10. URGES member governments and parliaments of the North Atlantic Alliance:

a. to promote greater solidarity within the Euro-Atlantic community on energy matters and to support the European Union effort to establish an integrated European energy market and to diversify energy supply sources and routes;

b. to elaborate further the role of the Alliance in the field of energy security, focusing on:

ii) using the revision of the 2003 European Security Strategy and the Alliance ’s 1999 Strategic Concept to promote a common understanding within NATO and the EU of energy security threats in the Euro-Atlantic region;

iii) using NATO structures to share intelligence and surveillance information related to common energy security concerns;

iv) considering establishing a centre of excellence, affiliated to NATO, to identify and analyse energy‑related threats and to provide advice on ways to overcome them;

v) considering the possibility of using NATO’s ties with significant energy supplier and transit countries to discuss energy-related security concerns;

vi) making it clear to the governments of major natural gas exporting countries that it views efforts to establish a “Gas-OPEC” to manipulate the supply of natural gas to the world market, either for the purpose of setting a non-market price or as an instrument of political pressure, to be harmful to the security of NATO member countries and to the world;

c. to support international projects, including Nabucco, which aim to diversify energy supplies, as well as projects which aim to increase the interconnectivity of national gas pipelines and electricity grids;

d. to reinforce dialogue with the Russian Federation in the field of energy, and to establish a unified policy in their engagement in that dialogue, emphasising the principles of the free market economy: open competition, transparency, mutual confidence, reciprocity and non‑discrimination, as provided by the Energy Charter Treaty;

e. to focus on environmental aspects of energy policies and to accelerate research and development of alternative energy solutions, including renewables, clean coal technologies and energy efficiency measures;

f. to acknowledge that some member states regard nuclear energy as a viable option to cope with climate change and supply security problems, provided that a long-term solution to the problem of nuclear waste and universal adherence to stringent nuclear safety standards are achieved.